A Miami jury decided that Elon Musk’s car company Tesla was partly responsible for a deadly crash in Florida involving its Autopilot driver assist technology and must pay the victims more than $240 million in damages.

A federal court jury found Tesla partly liable on Friday in a 2019 car crash that killed a pedestrian and left another person badly injured when the car was in Autopilot mode.

The jury verdict is one of the first major legal decisions about driver assistance technology that has gone against Tesla. Both Elon Musk and Tesla have spent years making claims about Autopilot's capabilities.

The federal jury held that not all the blame can be put on a reckless driver, even one who admitted he was distracted by his cellphone before hitting a young couple.

ET: with statement from Tesla regarding verdict and decision to appeal. A Florida jury has found Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) partly responsible for a fatal 2019 crash, claiming flaws in the company’s autopilot feature were to blame for the accident.

A Miami jury ordered Elon Musk's car company on Friday to pay $329 million to victims of a deadly crash involving its Autopilot driver assist technology, opening the door to other costly lawsuits and striking a blow to Tesla's reputation for safety.

A Florida jury on Friday found Tesla liable to pay $243 million to victims of a 2019 fatal crash of an Autopilot-equipped Model S, a verdict that could encourage more legal action against Elon Musk's electric vehicle company.

The decision ends a four-year long case remarkable not just in its outcome but that it even made it to trial. Many similar cases against Tesla have been dismissed and, when that didn't happen, settled by the company to avoid the spotlight of a trial.

Tesla hit with $243 million in damages after jury finds its Autopilot feature contributed to fatal crash. NBC News’ Dana Griffin reports from Florida.